NVIDIA buys Arm for US$40bn

NVIDIA has officially announced that it bought the semiconductor design company Arm for US$40 billion, which will help expand the graphics giant's presence in mobile computing. It plans to invest more in artificial intelligence technology to bring it to platforms like smartphones, PCs, and self-driving cars. Arm will gain access to NVIDIA's products and more support for its R&D initiatives. NVIDIA says it will build an AI supercomputer powered by Arm CPUs at its Cambridge headquarters to cement its commitment to the acquisition.

NVIDIA assures that Arm's technology will maintain its open licensing model and neutrality with current customers, which means Arm designs can take advantage of NVIDIA's tech as well. We should expect some unconventional chip designs from NVIDIA in the future. NVIDIA and Arm's boards have approved the acquisition, and the companies expect to close the transaction within 18 months. It'll require regulatory approval in the US, UK, EU, and China, of course.

Source: Engadget

Expect 64-bit Android devices by Christmas?

An ARM executive has told CNET that the plan to shift to 64-bit is happening faster than they expected. Tom Lantzsch, executive vice president of corporate strategy at ARM, said there has been an increase in the demand for 64-bit mobile processors, like that in the Cortex A53 64-bit mobile processor. And that it won’t be long until we see Android devices powered by these processors. "We believe the capability will be there for a 64-bit phone by Christmas," he said.

What can a 64-bit processor bring to the Android market? Lantzsch said it would even make 32-bit code run more efficiently on ARM’s 64 bit v8-A architecture than on the native 32-bit ARM architecture. This would mean battery life would improve, better features will be introduced, and there would be quicker responsiveness.

ARM Ecosystem collaborates for initial server platform standard

ARM  announced the collaborative development and immediate availability of a platform standard for ARMv8-A based (64-bit) servers, known as the ARM ‘Server Base System Architecture’ (SBSA) specification. This effort included input and support from software companies such as Canonical, Citrix, Linaro,Microsoft, Red Hat and SUSE, and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) including Dell and HP along with a broad set of silicon partners.

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First Impressions of Google's ARM Chromebook

By Gadjo Cardenas Sevilla

Google's first ARM powered Chromebook, made by Samsung, is an intriguing new take at the personal cloud-connected notebook. Selling for $249 and available only in the US through online resellers like Amazon.com, Google says this is the Chromebook for everyone. Here  are my first impressions.

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